Also might pick up a new Pro 15 with Vega tomorrow if it becomes available...
Grab one for me while you're there!
Also might pick up a new Pro 15 with Vega tomorrow if it becomes available...
I can't say enough how happy I am with my new Air... love the Gold and am even quite used to the new keyboard. With the great return policy Apple has, I've been really scrutinizing this one and I just don't find anything that I don't like. Before it arrived and I had read all the negatives about price and dim screens I got a bit nervous. I too keep mine for a long time and then pass them on to my husband. I want no buyers remorse. But the more I use it, the more confident I am that it's a great little machine. Hope you enjoy yours just as much.
I decided to pickup the Air as well today, I was in the Apple store and my wife’s laptop is in dire need of replacement. If anything I thought I’d do it as an experiment.
I’ll use it for a week and let you guys know of what I think of the machine. If it’s no good, I’ll return.
I went for the 8GB/256 variant, I think on a machine like this it would be rare for me to utilise or feel the benefit of the 16GB RAM as I don’t do heavy video or audio work, before the CPU bottlenecks me (on multitasking which is the only area I could ever have benefited from it and even then, marginal improvement).
Also might pick up a new Pro 15 with Vega tomorrow if it becomes available...
It's nice hearing not everyone hating it. My local BB sold out of the 8/256 space gray after a day or two and won't have more until this Friday, so I haven't bothered going to BB yet to check it out in person for myself, just relied on macrumors for what to expect, which overall has made it sound pretty bad.I just got back from the Apple store, I tried out the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, I really don’t know what all the fuss is about with the screen on the Air, seeing it in person it really wasn’t bad at all, the colours looked vibrant, the display has great viewing angles and the Air really is a step up from the last generation.
You can really tell the difference between the old Air and the new one, where as the difference between the Pro and the new Air isn’t that noticeable. The Pro is a little more brighter, it’s colours pop just a little bit more but other than that there isn’t a difference, 95% - 99% of people will be more than happy with the new Air, if you edit video professionally or you really need True Tone then get the Pro with Touch Bar, otherwise the Air is a great upgrade.
Other things I noticed include:
The speakers are louder and sound better than the old Air and my old 2011 MacBook Pro
The new gold colour is actually nice in person and is more of a copper gold, I can see how it appears different under different lighting conditions.
It’s actually smaller than I thought it would be and it’s got a nice premium weight to it
It’s more than fast enough for most tasks, I opened iMovie, pages, Safari with a number of tabs and it didn’t even turn the fan on (that I could hear anyway).
The screen on the new Air has the same resolution as the MacBook Pro, the only difference is that the Pro has a P3 and True Tone display. It really isn’t that much more noticeable, at least not to me, ie someone coming from a 2011 MacBook Pro non retina.
After taking about an hour and a half inside the Apple store I came out pleasantly surprised with the new Air, and the best news is that I’ve FINALLY decided what I’ll be buying/upgrading too, it will be without a doubt the new Air. It was able to handle everything I threw at it in my work load and more.
To most people I would reccomed this new Air, students and general consumers are going to love it I think.
It's nice hearing not everyone hating it. My local BB sold out of the 8/256 space gray after a day or two and won't have more until this Friday, so I haven't bothered going to BB yet to check it out in person for myself, just relied on macrumors for what to expect, which overall has made it sound pretty bad.
Im out of the laptop game a for a few years since I just got a new mbp 2018.
But for a while I was considering returning mine for a 2018 MBA.
I checked it out in the flesh and wasn't impressed.
The thing that turned me off was just one available port which is on the same side and so close to the power port.
No thanks....dongle or no dongle.
It does look like a sexy beast though.....I started out with gold as my target, but when i saw them all up close I feel this machine is best suited in space grey.
Two-three years down the road, this will be a really cool piece of gear but not now.
Two available ports, either can act as power.![]()
Looks like Lenovo were quicker than I expected. Ordered the Lenovo S730 i7/16GB/512GB yesterday and it is delivered today. I'll give a quick review of the difference in experience between the two as I think it is the closest Air competitor.
Following this, I am sad to report a dead pixel in the middle of the screenso it will be going back...
Otherwise, here are some thoughts:
- The machine is beautiful (S730), like honestly it is so nice I actually prefer it to MacBook's. Even the bottom and sides are so nice, not many manage to do this.
- The keyboard is superior by miles, it isn't a contest
- WiFi performance is worse than my Air. On the Air, I was getting near the limit of my Wifi router (330 Mbps down and up). The Lenovo only managed around 160 Mbps down and up. Test was run several times from same location to same WiFi router within a few minutes to ensure a fair test. The WiFi on the MBA is very very strong.
- The screen on the Lenovo is maybe a tad brighter and the MBA is definitely more yellow.
- Fan is audible quite a few times on the Lenovo, now I have to take into consideration that the Lenovo does have a far better processor (i7-8565u vs i5-8210Y), so it could just be that. It is a thin and light laptop so I would assume it will get loud under semi-loads.
- Battery life is likely to be better on the MBA, it has a 50Wh battery vs the 42 Wh on the Lenovo
I am not sure if I want to refund or replace the Lenovo.... It is so nice!
Nobody can beat A Lenovo Keyboard, I think that’s just known industry wide by now.
Fan is audible because Lenovo probably used a single thin heat pipe going to the fan, and it’s pushing the thermal limits when stressed at all.
Most Lenovo screens are also around 280-300 nits, but due to manufacturing variances and brands it could definitely be a bit brighter.
Lenovo designs some nice stuff, they just cheap out in some areas, the big one being the quality of their screens.
Nobody can beat A Lenovo Keyboard, I think that’s just known industry wide by now.
Fan is audible because Lenovo probably used a single thin heat pipe going to the fan, and it’s pushing the thermal limits when stressed at all.
Most Lenovo screens are also around 280-300 nits, but due to manufacturing variances and brands it could definitely be a bit brighter.
Lenovo designs some nice stuff, they just cheap out in some areas, the big one being the quality of their screens.
My one real complaint is the pricing and how it all squares with the rest of the Mac lineup.
Following this, I am sad to report a dead pixel in the middle of the screenso it will be going back...
Otherwise, here are some thoughts:
- The machine is beautiful (S730), like honestly it is so nice I actually prefer it to MacBook's. Even the bottom and sides are so nice, not many manage to do this.
- The keyboard is superior by miles, it isn't a contest
- WiFi performance is worse than my Air. On the Air, I was getting near the limit of my Wifi router (330 Mbps down and up). The Lenovo only managed around 160 Mbps down and up. Test was run several times from same location to same WiFi router within a few minutes to ensure a fair test. The WiFi on the MBA is very very strong.
- The screen on the Lenovo is maybe a tad brighter and the MBA is definitely more yellow.
- Fan is audible quite a few times on the Lenovo, now I have to take into consideration that the Lenovo does have a far better processor (i7-8565u vs i5-8210Y), so it could just be that. It is a thin and light laptop so I would assume it will get loud under semi-loads.
- Battery life is likely to be better on the MBA, it has a 50Wh battery vs the 42 Wh on the Lenovo
I am not sure if I want to refund or replace the Lenovo.... It is so nice!
and installed flux (isn't that what TrueTone is anyway?)
maybe the slightest of lag but what do you expect.
- The keyboard is superior by miles, it isn't a contest
first day using it with a dock and 4k screen: no problems, no lag.
and I was just running 3 java processes and browsing, maybe the slightest of lag but what do you expect. fan kicks off after one but to be expected.
this is a peppy little beast.
max brightness is too bright for me, not good for my eyes. and installed flux (isn't that what TrueTone is anyway?)
re: the keyboard, your fingers learn not to push so hard, done.
adjusted to force touch is weird, since I'm pressing too hard for single click. similar adjustment as the keyboard, but I'm disabling it.
not crazy about the degree the lid goes back, a bit restricted.
wow, speakers.
so far so good.
Alongside trackpads that seems to be one area MacBooks really excel, none of the competition seem to come close!Can’t believe it’s a laptop’s speakers, amazing.
What kind of RAM do you have?
I have 16GB, and have not seen any lag whatsoever on mine.
Sure is a lil beast![]()